"How long, O Lord?"
CHAPTER XI.
This is a chapter of very deep interest to the spiritual mind. It records two great facts, namely, the building of Babel, and the call of Abraham; or, in other words, man"s effort to provide for himself, and G.o.d"s provision made known to faith; man"s attempt to establish himself _in the earth_, and G.o.d"s calling a man _out of_ it, to find his portion and his home _in heaven_.
"And the whole earth was of one language and of one speech. And it came to pa.s.s as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.... And they said, Go to, let us build us a city, and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth." The human heart ever seeks a name, a portion, and a centre in the earth. It knows nothing of aspirations after heaven, heaven"s G.o.d, or heaven"s glory. Left to itself, it will ever find its objects in this lower world; it will ever "build beneath the skies." It needs G.o.d"s call, G.o.d"s revelation, and G.o.d"s power, to lift the heart of man above this present world, for man is a grovelling creature,--alienated from heaven, and allied to earth. In the scene now before us, there is no acknowledgment of G.o.d, no looking up to, or waiting on, him; nor was it the thought of the human heart to set up a place in which G.o.d might dwell,--to gather materials for the purpose of building a habitation for him,--alas! no; his name is never once mentioned. To make a name for himself was man"s object on the plain of Shinar; and such has been his object ever since. Whether we contemplate man on the plain of Shinar, or on the banks of the Tiber, we find him to be the same self-seeking, self-exalting, G.o.d-excluding creature, throughout. There is a melancholy consistency in all his purposes, his principles, and his ways; he ever seeks to shut out G.o.d and exalt himself.
Now, in what light soever we view this Babel confederacy, it is most instructive to see in it the early display of man"s genius and energies, regardless of G.o.d. In looking down along the stream of human history, we may easily perceive a marked tendency to confederacy, or a.s.sociation. Man seeks, for the most part, to compa.s.s his great ends in this way. Whether it be in the way of Philanthropy, Religion, or Politics, nothing can be done without an a.s.sociation of men regularly organized. It is well to see this principle,--well to mark its incipient working,--to see the earliest model which the page of inspiration affords of a human a.s.sociation, as exhibited on the plain of Shinar, in its design, its object, its attempt, its overthrow. If we look around us at the present moment we see the whole scene filled with a.s.sociations. To name them were useless, for they are as numerous as are the purposes of the human heart. But it is important to mark that the first of all these was the Shinar a.s.sociation, for the establishment of the human interests, and the exaltation of the human name,--objects which may well be set in compet.i.tion with any that engage the attention of this enlightened and civilized age. But, in the judgment of faith, there is one grand defect, namely, G.o.d is shut out; and to attempt to exalt man, without G.o.d, is to exalt him to a dizzy height only that he may be dashed down into hopeless confusion and irretrievable ruin. The Christian should only know _one_ a.s.sociation, and that is, the Church of the living G.o.d, incorporated by the Holy Ghost, who came down from heaven as the witness of Christ"s glorification, to baptize believers into one body, and const.i.tute them G.o.d"s dwelling-place. Babylon is the very opposite of this, in every particular; and she becomes at the close, as we know, "the habitation of devils." (See Rev. xviii.)
"And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another"s speech. So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth; and they left off to build the city." Such was the end of man"s first a.s.sociation. Thus it will be to the end.
"a.s.sociate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces ... gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces." (Isa. viii. 9.) How different it is when G.o.d a.s.sociates men! In the second chapter of Acts, we see the blessed One coming down in infinite grace to meet man in the very circ.u.mstances in which his sin had set him. The Holy Ghost enabled the messengers of grace to deliver their message in the very tongue wherein each was born. Precious proof this, that G.o.d desired to reach man"s heart with the sweet story of grace! The law from the fiery mount was not thus promulgated. When G.o.d was telling what man ought to be, he spoke in one tongue; but when he was telling what he himself was, he spoke in many. Grace broke through the barrier which man"s pride and folly had caused to be erected, in order that every man might hear and understand the glad tidings of salvation,--"the wonderful works of G.o.d." And to what end was this? Just to a.s.sociate men on G.o.d"s ground, round G.o.d"s centre, and on G.o.d"s principles. It was to give them, in reality, one language, one centre, one object, one hope, one life. It was to gather them in such a way as that they never should be scattered or confounded again; to give them a name and a place which should endure forever; to build for them a tower and a city which should not only have their top reaching to heaven, but their imperishable foundation laid _in_ heaven, by the omnipotent hand of G.o.d himself. It was to gather them around the glorious person of a risen and highly exalted Christ, and unite them all in one grand design of magnifying and adoring him.
If my reader will turn to the seventh chapter of Revelation, he will find at the close thereof, "All nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues," standing round the Lamb; and, with one voice, ascribing all praise to him. Thus the three scriptures may be read in most interesting and profitable connection. In Gen. xi. G.o.d gives various tongues as an expression of his _judgment_; in Acts ii. he gives various tongues as an expression of _grace_; and in Rev. vii. we see all those tongues gathered round the Lamb, in _glory_. How much better it is, therefore, to find our place in G.o.d"s a.s.sociation than in man"s!
The former ends in glory, the latter in confusion; the former is carried forward by the energy of the Holy Ghost, the latter by the unhallowed energy of fallen man; the former has for its object the exaltation of Christ, the latter has for its object the exaltation of man, in some way or other.
Finally, I would say, that all who sincerely desire to know the true character, object, and issue of human a.s.sociations, should read the opening verses of Genesis xi.; and, on the other hand, all who desire to know the excellency, the beauty, the power, the enduring character of divine a.s.sociation, should look at that holy, living, heavenly corporation, which is called, in the New Testament, the Church of the living G.o.d, the body of Christ, the bride of the Lamb.
May the Lord enable us to look at and apprehend all these things, in the power of faith; for only in this way can they profit our souls.
Points of truth, however interesting; scriptural knowledge, however profound and extensive; Biblical criticism, however accurate and valuable, may all leave the heart barren, and the affections cold. We want to find Christ in the Word; and, having found him, to feed on him by faith. This would impart freshness, unction, power, vitality, energy, and intensity, all of which we deeply stand in need of, in this day of freezing formalism. What is the value of a chilling orthodoxy without a living Christ, known in all his powerful, personal attractions? No doubt, sound doctrine is immensely important. Every faithful servant of Christ will feel himself imperatively called upon to "hold fast the form of sound words." But, after all, a living Christ is the very soul and life, the joints and marrow, the sinews and arteries, the essence and substance of sound doctrine. May we, by the power of the Holy Ghost, see more beauty and preciousness in Christ, and thus be weaned from the spirit and principles of Babylon.
We shall, G.o.d willing, consider the remainder of Chapter xi. in the next section.
CHAPTER XII.
The book of Genesis is, for the most part, taken up with the history of seven men, namely, Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. There is, I doubt not, a specific line of truth brought out in connection with each of those men. Thus, for example, in Abel we have the great foundation truth of man"s coming to G.o.d, in the way of atonement,--atonement apprehended by faith. In Enoch, we have the proper portion and hope of the heavenly family; while Noah presents to us the destiny of the earthly family. Enoch was taken to heaven before the judgment came; Noah was carried through the judgment into a restored earth. Thus, in each, we have a distinct character of truth, and, as a consequence, a distinct phase of faith. My reader can pursue the subject fully, in connection with the eleventh of Hebrews; and I feel a.s.sured he will find much interest and profit, in so doing. We shall now proceed with our immediate theme, namely, the call of Abraham.
By comparing Chapter xii. 1, Chapter xi. 31, with Acts vii. 2-4, we learn a truth of immense practical value to the soul. "The Lord _had_ said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and _from thy kindred_, and from thy father"s house, unto a land that I will show thee." (Chap.
xii. 1.) Such was the communication made to Abraham,--a communication of the most definite character, designed of G.o.d to act upon Abraham"s heart and conscience. "The G.o.d of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran, and said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into a land that I will show thee. Then went he forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and dwelt in Charran, (or Haran;) and from thence, _when his father was dead_, he removed him into this land wherein ye now dwell." (Acts vii. 2-4.) The result of this communication is given in Chapter xi. 31: "And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his son"s son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram"s wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, _to go into the land of Canaan_: and they came _unto Haran, and dwelt there_ ... and Terah died in Haran."
From all these pa.s.sages taken together, we learn that the ties of nature hindered the full response of Abraham"s soul to the call of G.o.d.
Though called to Canaan, he, nevertheless, tarried at Haran, till nature"s tie was snapped by death, and then, with unimpeded step, he made his way to the place to which "the G.o.d of glory" had called him.
This is full of meaning. The influences of nature are ever hostile to the full realization and practical power of "the calling of G.o.d." We are sadly p.r.o.ne to take lower ground than that which the divine call would set before us. It needs great simplicity and integrity of faith to enable the soul to rise to the height of G.o.d"s thoughts, and to make our own of that which he reveals.
The apostle"s prayer (Eph. i. 15-22) demonstrates how fully he, by the Holy Ghost, entered into the difficulty with which the Church would ever have to contend, in seeking to apprehend "the hope of _G.o.d"s calling_, and the riches of the glory of _his_ inheritance in the saints;" because, evidently, if we fail to apprehend the calling, we cannot "walk worthy" thereof. I must know where I am called to go, before I can go thither. Had Abraham"s soul been fully under the power of the truth that "G.o.d"s calling" was to Canaan, and that there, too, lay "his inheritance," he could not have remained in Charran. And so with us. If we are led by the Holy Ghost into the understanding of the truth, that we are called with a heavenly calling; that our home, our portion, our hope, our inheritance, are all above, "where Christ sitteth at G.o.d"s right hand," we could never be satisfied to maintain a standing, seek a name, or lay up an inheritance, on the earth. The two things are incompatible: this is the true way to look at the matter. The heavenly calling is not an empty dogma, a powerless theory, nor a crude speculation. It is either a divine reality, or it is absolutely nothing. Was Abraham"s call to Canaan a speculation? Was it a mere theory about which he might talk or argue, while, at the same time, he continued in Charran? a.s.suredly not. It was a truth, a divine truth, a powerfully practical truth. He was called to Canaan, and G.o.d could not possibly sanction his stopping short thereof. Thus it was with Abraham, and thus it is with us. If we would enjoy the divine sanction and the divine presence, we must be seeking by faith to act upon the divine call. That is to say, we must seek to reach, in experience, in practice, and moral character, the point to which G.o.d has called us, and that point is full fellowship with his own Son,--fellowship with him in his rejection below, fellowship with him in his acceptance above.
But, as in Abraham"s case, it was death that broke the link by which nature bound him to Charran; so, in our case, it is death which breaks the link by which nature ties us down to this present world. We must realize the truth that we have died in Christ, our Head and Representative,--that our place in nature and in the world is amongst the things that were,--that the cross of Christ is to us what the Red Sea was to Israel, namely, that which separates us forever from the land of death and judgment. Thus only shall we be able to walk, in any measure, "worthy of the calling wherewith we are called,"--our high, our holy, our heavenly calling,--our "calling of G.o.d in Christ Jesus."
And here I would dwell for a little on the cross of Christ in its two grand, fundamental phases, or in other words, the cross as the basis of our worship and our discipleship, our peace and our testimony, our relation with G.o.d, and our relation with the world. If as a convicted sinner I look at the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, I behold in it the everlasting foundation of my peace. I see my "sin" put away, as to the root or principle thereof, and I see my "sins" borne. I see G.o.d to be, in very deed, "for me," and that, moreover, in the very condition in which my convicted conscience tells me I am. The cross unfolds G.o.d as the _sinner"s_ Friend. It reveals him in that most wondrous character as the righteous Justifier of the most unG.o.dly sinner. Creation never could do this. Providence never could do this. Therein I may see G.o.d"s power, his majesty, and his wisdom: but what if all these things should be ranged against me? Looked at in themselves abstractedly, they would be so, for I am a sinner; and power, majesty, and wisdom, could not put away my sin, nor justify G.o.d in receiving me.
The introduction of the cross, however, changes the aspect of things entirely. There I find G.o.d dealing with sin in such a manner as to glorify himself infinitely. There I see the magnificent display and perfect harmony of all the divine attributes. I see love, and such love as captivates and a.s.sures my heart, and weans it, in proportion as I realize it, from every other object. I see wisdom, and such wisdom as baffles devils and astonishes angels. I see power, and such power as bears down all opposition. I see holiness, and such holiness as repulses sin to the very farthest point of the moral universe, and gives the most intense expression of G.o.d"s abhorrence thereof, that could possibly be given. I see grace, and such grace as sets the sinner in the very presence of G.o.d,--yea, puts him into his bosom. Where could I see all these things but in the cross? Nowhere else. Look where you please, and you cannot find aught that so blessedly combines those two great points, namely, "glory to G.o.d in the highest," and "on earth peace."
How precious, therefore, is the cross, in this its first phase, as the basis of the sinner"s peace, the basis of his worship, and the basis of his eternal relationship with the G.o.d who is there so blessedly and so gloriously revealed! How precious to G.o.d, as furnishing him with a righteous ground on which to go in the full display of all his matchless perfections, and in his most gracious dealings with the sinner! So precious is it to G.o.d that, as a recent writer has well remarked, "All that he has said,--all that he has done, from the very beginning, indicates that it was ever uppermost in his heart. And no wonder! His dear and well-beloved Son was to hang there, between heaven and earth, the object of all the shame and suffering that men and devils could heap upon him, because he loved to do his Father"s will, and redeem the children of his grace. It will be the grand centre of attraction, as the fullest expression of his love, throughout eternity."
Then, as the basis of our practical discipleship and testimony, the cross demands our most profound consideration. In this aspect of it, I need hardly say, it is as perfect as in the former. The same cross which connects me with G.o.d has separated me from the world. A dead man is evidently done with the world; and hence the believer, having died in Christ, is done with the world; and, having risen with Christ, is connected with G.o.d, in the power of a new life, a new nature. Being thus inseparably linked with Christ, he of necessity partic.i.p.ates in his acceptance with G.o.d, and in his rejection by the world. The two things go together. The former makes him a worshipper and a citizen in heaven, the latter makes him a witness and a stranger on earth. That brings him inside the veil; this puts him outside the camp. The one is as perfect as the other. If the cross has come between me and my sins, it has just as really come between me and the world. In the former case, it puts me into the place of peace with G.o.d; in the latter, it puts me into the place of hostility with the world, that is, in a moral point of view; though in another sense it makes me the patient, humble witness of that precious, unfathomable, eternal grace which is set forth in the cross.
Now, the believer should clearly understand, and rightly distinguish between, both the above phases of the cross of Christ. He should not profess to enjoy the one, while he refuses to enter into the other. If his ear is open to hear Christ"s voice within the veil, it should be open also to hear his voice outside the camp. If he enters into the atonement which the cross has accomplished, he should also realize the rejection which it necessarily involves. The former flows out of the part which G.o.d had in the cross; the latter out of the part which man had therein. It is our happy privilege, not only to be done with our sins, but to be done with the world also. All this is involved in the doctrine of the cross. Well, therefore, might the apostle say, "G.o.d forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world." Paul looked upon the world as a thing which ought to be nailed to the cross; and the world, in having crucified Christ, had crucified all who belonged to him. Hence there is a double crucifixion, as regards the believer and the world; and were this fully entered into, it would prove the utter impossibility of ever amalgamating the two. Beloved reader, let us deeply, honestly, and prayerfully ponder these things; and may the Holy Ghost give us the ability to enter into the full practical power of both the phases of the cross of Christ.
We shall now return to our theme.
We are not told how long Abraham tarried at Haran; yet G.o.d graciously waited on his servant until, freed from nature"s clog, he could fully obey his command. There was, however, no accommodation of that command to the circ.u.mstances of nature. This would never do. G.o.d loves his servants too well to deprive them of the full blessedness of entire obedience. There was no fresh revelation to Abraham"s soul during the time of his sojourn in Haran. It is well to see this. We must act up to the light already communicated, and then G.o.d will give us more. "To him that hath shall more be given." This is G.o.d"s principle. Still we must remember that G.o.d will never _drag_ us along the path of true-hearted discipleship. This would greatly lack the moral excellency which characterizes all the ways of G.o.d. He does not _drag_ but _draw_ us along the path which leads to ineffable blessedness in himself; and if we do not see that it is for our real advantage to break through all the barriers of nature, in order to respond to G.o.d"s call, we forsake our own mercies. But alas! our hearts little enter into this. We begin to calculate about the sacrifices, the hindrances, and the difficulties, instead of bounding along the path, in eagerness of soul, as knowing and loving the One whose call has sounded in our ears.
There is much true blessing to the soul in every step of obedience, for obedience is the fruit of faith; and faith puts us into living a.s.sociation and communion with G.o.d himself. Looking at obedience in this light, we can easily see how distinctly it is marked off, in every feature of it from legality. This latter sets a man with the entire burden of his sins on him to serve G.o.d by keeping the law; hence the soul is kept in constant torture, and so far from running in the path of obedience, it has not even taken the very first step. True obedience, on the contrary, is simply the manifestation or outflow of a new nature communicated in grace. To this new nature G.o.d graciously imparts precepts for its guidance; and it is perfectly certain that the divine nature guided by the divine precepts can never by any possibility resolve itself into legality. What const.i.tutes legality is the old nature taking up G.o.d"s precepts and essaying to carry them out.
To attempt to regulate man"s fallen nature by G.o.d"s pure and holy law, is as useless and absurd as any thing can be. How could fallen nature breathe an atmosphere so pure? Impossible. Both the atmosphere and the nature must be divine.
But not only does the blessed G.o.d impart a divine nature to the believer, and guide that nature by his heavenly precepts, he also sets before it suited hopes and expectations. Thus, in Abraham"s case, "_The G.o.d of glory_ appeared unto him." And for what purpose? To set before his soul"s vision an attractive object,--"a land that _I_ will show thee." This was not compulsion but attraction. G.o.d"s land was in the judgment of the new nature,--the judgment of faith, far better than Ur or Charran: and albeit he had not seen the land, yet, inasmuch as it was G.o.d"s land, faith judged it to be worth having, and not only worth having, but also fully worth the surrender of present things. Hence we read, "by faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive as an inheritance obeyed, and he went out, not knowing whither he went." That is to say, "he walked by faith, not by sight." Though he had not seen with his eyes, he believed with his heart, and faith became the great moving spring in his soul. Faith rests on a far more solid ground than the evidence of our senses, and that is the word of G.o.d. Our senses may deceive us, but G.o.d"s word never can.
Now, the entire truth of the divine nature, together with the precepts which guide and the hopes which animate it, the whole of the divine doctrine respecting these things is completely thrown overboard by the system of legalism. The legalist teaches that we must surrender earth in order to get heaven. But how can fallen nature surrender that to which it is allied? How can it be attracted by that in which it sees no charms? Heaven has no charms for nature; yea, it is the very last place it would like to be found in. Nature has no taste for heaven, its occupations, or its occupants. Were it possible for nature to find itself there, it would be miserable. Thus, then, nature has no ability to surrender earth, and no desire to get heaven. True, it would be glad to escape h.e.l.l and its ineffable torment, gloom, and misery. But the desire to escape h.e.l.l, and the desire to get heaven, spring from two very different sources. The former may exist in the old nature; the latter can only be found in the new. Were there no "lake of fire," and no "worm" in h.e.l.l, nature would not so shrink from it. The same principle holds good in reference to all of nature"s pursuits and desires. The legalist teaches that we must give up sin before we can get righteousness. But nature cannot give up sin; and as to righteousness, it absolutely hates it. True, it would like a certain amount of religion; but it is only with the idea that religion will preserve it from h.e.l.l fire. It does not love religion because of its introducing the soul to the present enjoyment of G.o.d and his ways.
How different from all this miserable system of legalism, in every phase thereof, is "the gospel of the glory of the blessed G.o.d!" This gospel reveals G.o.d himself coming down in perfect grace, and putting away sin by the sacrifice of the cross; putting it away, in the most absolute manner, on the ground of eternal righteousness, inasmuch as Christ suffered for it, having been made sin for us. And not only is G.o.d seen putting away sin, but also imparting a new life, even the risen life of his own risen, exalted, and glorified Son, which life every true believer possesses, in virtue of being linked, in G.o.d"s eternal counsels, with him who was nailed to the cross, but is now on the throne of the Majesty in the heavens. This nature, as we have remarked, he graciously guides by the precepts of his holy word, applied in power by the Holy Ghost. He also animates it by the presentation of indestructible hopes. He reveals, in the distance, "the hope of glory"--"a city which hath foundations"--"a better country, that is an heavenly"--the "many mansions" of the Father"s house, on high--"golden harps"--"green palms," and "white robes"--"a kingdom which cannot be moved"--everlasting a.s.sociation with himself, in those regions of bliss and light, where sorrow and darkness can never enter--the unspeakable privilege of being led, throughout the countless ages of eternity, "beside the still waters, and through the green pastures" of redeeming love. How different is all this from the legalist"s notion! Instead of calling upon me to educate and manage, by the dogmas of systematic religion, an irremediably corrupt nature, in order that thereby I may surrender an earth that I love, and attain to a heaven which I hate, he, in infinite grace, and on the ground of Christ"s accomplished sacrifice, bestows upon me a nature which can enjoy heaven, and a heaven for that nature to enjoy; and, not only a heaven, but himself the unfailing spring of all heaven"s joy.
Such is G.o.d"s most excellent way. Thus he dealt with Abraham. Thus he dealt with Saul of Tarsus. Thus he deals with us. The G.o.d of glory showed Abraham a better country than Ur or Charran. He showed Saul of Tarsus a glory so bright, that it closed his eyes to all earth"s brightest glories, and caused him to count them all "but dung," that he might win that blessed One who had appeared to him, and whose voice had spoken to his inmost soul. He saw a heavenly Christ in glory; and, throughout the remainder of his course, notwithstanding the weakness of the earthen vessel, that heavenly Christ and that heavenly glory engrossed his whole soul.
"And Abram pa.s.sed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land." The presence of the Canaanite in G.o.d"s land would, necessarily, prove a trial to Abraham. It would be a demand upon his faith and hope, an exercise of heart, a trial of patience. He had left Ur and Charran behind, and come into the country of which "the G.o.d of glory" had spoken to him, and there he finds "the Canaanite." But there, too, he finds the Lord. "And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land." The connection between the two statements is beautiful and touching. "The Canaanite was then in the land," and lest Abraham"s eye should rest upon the Canaanite, the present possessor of the land, Jehovah appears to him as the One who was going to give the land to him and to his seed forever. Thus Abraham was taken up with the Lord, and not with the Canaanite. This is full of instruction for us. The Canaanite in the land is the expression of the power of Satan; but, instead of being occupied with Satan"s power to keep us out of the inheritance, we are called to apprehend Christ"s power to bring us in.
"We wrestle, not with flesh and blood, ... but with spiritual wickedness in the heavenlies." The very sphere into which we are called is the sphere of our conflict. Should this terrify us? By no means. We have Christ there,--a victorious Christ, in whom we are "more than conquerors." Hence, instead of indulging "a spirit of fear," we cultivate a spirit of worship. "And there builded he an _altar_ unto the Lord, who appeared unto him." "And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his _tent_." The altar and the tent give us the two great features of Abraham"s character. A worshipper of G.o.d, a stranger in the world,--most blessed characteristics! Having nothing on earth,--having our all in G.o.d.
Abraham had "not so much as to set his foot upon;" but he had G.o.d to enjoy, and that was enough.
However, faith has its trials, as well as its answers. It is not to be imagined that the man of faith, having pushed out from the sh.o.r.e of circ.u.mstances, finds it all smooth and easy sailing. By no means. Again and again he is called to encounter rough seas and stormy skies; but it is all graciously designed to lead him into deeper and more matured experience of what G.o.d is to the heart that confides in him. Were the sky always without a cloud and the ocean without a ripple, the believer would not know so well the G.o.d with whom he has to do; for, alas! we know how p.r.o.ne the heart is to mistake the peace of circ.u.mstances for the peace of G.o.d. When every thing is going on smoothly and pleasantly, our property safe, our business prosperous, our children and servants carrying themselves agreeably, our residence comfortable, our health excellent, every thing, in short, just to our mind, how apt we are to mistake the peace which reposes upon such circ.u.mstances for that peace which flows from the realized presence of Christ. The Lord knows this; and, therefore, he comes in, in one way or another, and stirs up the nest, that is, if we are found nestling in circ.u.mstances, instead of in himself.
But, again, we are frequently led to judge of the rightness of a path by its exemption from trial, and _vice versa_. This is a great mistake.
The path of obedience may often be found most trying to flesh and blood. Thus, in Abraham"s case, he was not only called to encounter the Canaanite, in the place to which G.o.d had called him, but there was also "a famine in the land." Should he, therefore, have concluded that he was not in his right place? a.s.suredly not. That would have been to judge according to the sight of his eyes, the very thing which faith never does. No doubt it was a deep trial to the heart, an inexplicable puzzle to nature; but to faith it was all plain and easy. When Paul was called into Macedonia, almost the first thing he had to encounter was the prison at Philippi. This, to a heart out of communion, would have seemed a death-blow to the entire mission. But Paul never questioned the rightness of his position. He was enabled to "sing praises" in the midst of it all, a.s.sured that every thing was just as it should be: and so it was; for in the prison of Philippi was one of G.o.d"s vessels of mercy, who could not, humanly speaking, have heard the gospel, had not the preachers of it been thrust into the very place where he was. The devil was made, in spite of himself, the instrument of sending the gospel to the ears of one of G.o.d"s elect.
Now, Abraham should have reasoned in the same way, in reference to the famine. He was in the very place in which G.o.d had set him; and, evidently, he received no direction to leave it. True, the famine was there; and, moreover, Egypt was at hand, offering deliverance from pressure; still the path of G.o.d"s servant was plain. _It is better to starve in Canaan, if it should be so, than live in luxury in Egypt._ It is better far to suffer in G.o.d"s path, than be at ease in Satan"s. It is better to be poor with Christ, than rich without him. "Abraham had sheep, and oxen, and he a.s.ses, and men servants, and maid servants, and she a.s.ses, and camels." Substantial proofs, the natural heart would, doubtless, say, of the rightness of his step, in going down to Egypt.
But, ah! he had no altar,--no communion. Egypt was not the place of G.o.d"s presence. He lost more than he gained by going thither. This is ever the case. Nothing can ever make up for the loss of our communion with G.o.d. Exemption from temporary pressure, and the accession of the greatest wealth are but poor equivalents for what one loses by diverging a hair"s breadth from the straight path of obedience. How many of us can add our amen to this! How many, in order to avoid the trial and exercise connected with G.o.d"s path, have slipped aside into the current of this present evil world, and thereby brought leanness and barrenness, heaviness and gloom, into their souls! It may be they have, to use the common phrase, "made money," increased their store, obtained the world"s favor, been "entreated well" by its Pharaohs, gotten a name and a position amongst men; but are these a proper equivalent for joy in G.o.d, communion, liberty of heart, a pure, uncondemning conscience, a thankful, worshipping spirit, vigorous testimony, and effectual service? Alas, for the man that can think so!
And yet all the above incomparable blessings have been often sold for a little ease, a little influence, a little money.
Christian reader, let us watch against the tendency to slip aside from the narrow, yet safe, the _sometimes_ rough, yet _always_ pleasant, path of simple, wholehearted obedience. Let us keep guard--jealous, careful guard--over "faith and a pure conscience," for which nothing can compensate. Should trial come, let us, instead of turning aside into Egypt, wait on G.o.d; and thus the trial, instead of proving an occasion of stumbling, will prove an opportunity for obedience. Let us, when tempted to slip into the course of the world, remember him "who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of G.o.d, and our Father." (Gal. i. 4.) If such was his love for us, and such his sense of the true character of this present world, that he gave himself, in order to deliver us from it, shall we deny him by plunging again into that from which his cross has forever delivered us? May G.o.d Almighty forbid! May he keep us in the hollow of his hand, and under the shadow of his wings, until we see Jesus as he is, and be like him, and with him forever.
CHAPTER XIII.
The opening of this chapter presents to us a subject of immense interest to the heart,--namely, the true character of divine restoration. When the child of G.o.d has, in any way, declined in his spiritual condition, and lost his communion, he is in great danger, when conscience begins to work, of failing in the apprehension of divine grace, and of stopping short of the proper mark of divine restoration. Now, we know that G.o.d does every thing in a way entirely worthy of himself. Whether he creates, redeems, converts, restores, or provides, he can only act like himself. What is worthy of himself is, ever and only, his standard of action. This is unspeakably happy for us, inasmuch as we would ever seek to "limit the Holy One of Israel;"
and in nothing are we so p.r.o.ne to limit him as in his restoring grace.
In the case now before us, we see that Abraham was not only delivered out of Egypt, but brought back "unto the place where his tent had been _at the beginning_, ... unto the place of the altar which he had made there _at the first_: and there Abraham called on the name of the Lord." Nothing can satisfy G.o.d, in reference to a wanderer or backslider, but his being entirely restored. We, in the self-righteousness of our hearts, might imagine that such an one should take a lower place than that which he had formerly occupied; and so he should, were it a question of his merit or his character; but, inasmuch as it is, altogether, a question of grace, it is G.o.d"s prerogative to fix the standard of restoration; and his standard is set forth in the following pa.s.sage: "If thou wilt return, O Israel, return _to me_." It is thus that G.o.d restores, and it would be unworthy of himself to do any thing else. He will either not restore at all, or else restore in such a way as to magnify and glorify the riches of his grace. Thus, when the leper was brought back, he was actually conducted "to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation." When the prodigal returned, he was set down at the table with the father. When Peter was restored, he was able to stand before the men of Israel and say, "ye denied the Holy One, and the Just,"--the very thing which he had done himself, under the most aggravated circ.u.mstances. In all these cases, and many more which might be adduced, we see the perfectness of G.o.d"s restoration. He always brings the soul back to himself, in the full power of grace and the full confidence of faith. "If thou wilt return, return _to me_."
"Abraham came unto the place where his tent had been at _the beginning_."
Then, as to the moral effect of divine restoration, it is most deeply practical. If legalism gets its answer in the _character_ of the restoration, antinomianism gets its answer in the _effect_ thereof. The restored soul will have a very deep and keen sense of the evil from which it has been delivered, and this will be evidenced by a jealous, prayerful, holy, and circ.u.mspect spirit. We are not restored in order that we may, the more lightly, go and sin again, but rather that we may "go and sin no more." The deeper my sense of the _grace_ of divine restoration, the deeper will be my sense of the _holiness_ of it also.
This principle is taught and established throughout all scripture; but especially in two well-known pa.s.sages, namely, Psalms xxiii. 3, and 1 John i. 9: "He restoreth my soul: _he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness_ for his name"s sake." And again: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to _cleanse us from all unrighteousness_." The proper path for a divinely-restored soul is "the path of righteousness." In other words, having tasted divine grace we walk in righteousness. To talk of grace, while walking in unrighteousness, is, as the apostle says, to turn "the grace of our G.o.d into lasciviousness." If "grace reigns through righteousness unto eternal life," it also manifests itself in righteousness, in the outflow of that life. The grace that forgives us our sins, cleanses us from all unrighteousness. Those things must never be separated. When taken together, they furnish a triumphant answer to the legalism and antinomianism of the human heart.